If You’re Thinking of Buying a Smartwatch Consider the Following Tips

Now that most of us have smartphones, the next must-have gadget is the smartwatch. Here are eight suggestions to help you decide which smartwatch is right for you.

Compatibility with your smartphone – Since most smartwatches are designed to serve as companions to your smartphone, device-compatibility is very important. Of course, the Apple Watch only works with iPhones. But, that doesn’t mean that iOS users are limited. Android Wear watches now work with iPhone, as well as Pebble and a host of other upstarts. If you don’t want to be tied to iOS or Android forever, you can find an agnostic device.

Notifications – One of the best features of any smartwatch is that they can synchronize data and display notifications originally received on your smartphone. Think about the type of notifications you want to receive: alarm, email, social media, calendar, text message, or news updates. Since some models only handle specific notifications or alerts, you’ll need to decide what alerts you can’t live without. By the way, for the notifications to work the watch must be within wireless range of the phone at all times.

Display – Just like smartphones, every smartwatch has a different display. Some of them include a full touchscreen with brilliant color, while others may have a simple black and white screen. Plus, the way you receive notifications and alerts on said screens is different. For instance, some watches will only display icons for the most recent notifications while others will display the entire message associated with an alert. Make sure you look at the display for the smartwatch you’ve picked out, and that you understand the full extent of its support.

Battery life – The battery life of some smartwatches last only half a day while others can last over 1000 days at a time. Power cycles depend on the watch features, how often the watch is being used and the size of the internal battery. That’s why rated battery life is something you should look at when picking out your smartwatch.

Water Resistance –Some watches are splash proof which means they can handle a bit of rain but not much else, while others can be submerged underwater up to a specific depth. If you go swimming and intend to leave your watch on you’ll want to pay attention to the water resistance rating.

Reparability – Since your smartwatch is an expensive purchase, you will want to be able to repair it if necessary. For example, can you easily replace the wrist bands or the battery? What if the display cracks, will it be expensive to repair or will you need to purchase a replacement? These are things that most people overlook when buying a new device.

Appearance –Style is important in a smartwatch, and luckily things are changing for the better. Do you like the look and feel of the watch? Make sure you like how it looks before making a purchase.

Telling time – Look for a smartwatch that continues to show the time when it’s not in use.

This list includes important considerations of what you should look at when picking out a smartwatch but it’s not all-inclusive by any means. Don’t be afraid to look for other elements and features when picking out a watch, especially if you have something specific in mind.